Progress

Here is a short summary of what has happened so far:

January 11th (Monday):  I broke my ankle in three places on my way to work and was taken to the emergency room where a doctor and PA had to wrench my ankle back into place as I had thrown it out of place during the injury.  They had to do this twice because it didn't stay in place the first time.  Even though they gave me IV drugs and several shots of pain killer directly into my ankle the whole thing hurt immensely.  I was relieved when they put a splint on it and discharged me.  I was in the emergency room for about 5 hours total.  They asked me to call an orthopedic specialist (Dr Boyer) and make an appointment for the following day. I had to drag myself up the stairs into our apartment to get home.  M helped as much as he could, but I fell down trying to use the crutches and probably knocked my ankle out of joint yet again in the process--I could feel it moving around.  Thank god for pain killers.

January 12th (Tuesday):  My first appointment with Dr. Boyer.  Getting there was a huge trial, although getting down the stairs at the apartment is much easier than going up them!  At the appointment, Dr. Boyer basically just sat me down and told me I needed surgery (no way around it). They wanted the swelling to go down on my ankle before the operation, so the surgery was scheduled for Thursday the 14th. I went home afterwards, and dragged myself up the stairs again.  M got me a knee scooter to use instead of the crutches and cleared spaces around the apartment so I could maneuver to the bathroom safely.  He also brought me bone broth and coffee and all sorts of comforts, and took the week off to help me. (I love my husband, this would have been absolute hell without him.)

January 13th (Wednesday): I rested as much as possible.  The Codeine and Tylenol that they gave me covers about 50% of the pain.  The pain is very intense as the codeine begins to wear off, I am not able to sleep very well, and am in horrible pain several times a day that lasts an hour to two hours at a time even at maximum dosage of painkillers. I had to have an empty stomach until surgery, and couldn't drink liquids including water after midnight.  I took my codeine every four hours with very small sips of water, and was intensely thirsty.

January 14th (Thursday): Surgery day!  I was in a lot of pain while I waited for the surgery, they gave me an IV and several shots of drugs, which didn't do much to help for very long. I had never had any kind of surgery before, and had never been under anesthesia before.  They wheeled me into the operating room and gave me some oxygen to breathe, and then, next thing I knew they were waking me up.  They immediately gave me some pain killers upon waking, and after a little time had passed, they let M take me home, after making an appointment for me to have the splint removed the following week.  I drank a lot of water.  I was in considerably less pain after the surgery.  They placed a splint on the ankle after surgery to keep everything in place which seemed to be nicely rigid.  I slept better that night, and the codeine pretty much covered the pain.

January 15th-January 22nd  (Friday-Friday):  I slept a lot this week, my appetite returned, and as the time to take the splint off approached, I felt like I was improving.  I had company from my cousin and one of my friends from work, which was really nice.  I sort of cleaned the apartment a little.  I was definitely feeling better--it wasn't all about the pain any  more.  On the 22nd, I scooted down the stairs and made it to my appointment where they removed the splint and gave me a "Boot" cast.

January 23-present (Saturday-): During the weekend I adjusted to the boot cast.  Definitely not as comfortable as the splint.  I'm not sleeping as well.  I am also allowed to stretch my ankle with a goal of 3 times a day--I am doing three doses of 50 stretches with the goal of being able to manipulate it normally.  It is sore, but not so bad.  I am also cutting back on the codeine to once every 6-8 hours--although due to the discomfort, I am taking more at night so I can sleep.  I cooked twice this week which was great, but also exhausting, and I worked from home 15 hours which was also nice, but tiring.  I have another appointment Friday and am hoping that the healing is coming along well.  I have been taking sponge baths since I can't really get into the shower yet--it really sucks that this is my right foot, I would be able to do better if it was my left instead I think...

As for my fasting, I have been doing 24 hours fasts about every other day.  I each plenty of protein each day, try to get some green veg, and eat enough fat.  My waist is 36 inches as of today, and my weight is 201.6 with the cast on.  I think I am doing OK with the fasting--I am also taking a multiple vitamin each day, and drinking bone broth regularly.  

Broken Bones and Fasting

So you may have noticed that I did not post any pictures or menus for the past few days as planned. Life has a way of interrupting the best laid plans.  On Monday I slipped on black ice and broke three bones in my ankle. Horrible experience. Lots of pain, lots of drugs, and two procedures later, I am lying in bed on a Saturday night waiting for my next codeine fix and hoping I can sleep afterwards. 

I haven't been eating much.  I was nauseated and had no appetite the first three days when the pain was so intense I couldn't stand it...now my appetite is kind of back. I have been drinking lots of water and bone broth, and a little coffee.  There is a Chinese restaurant nearby that makes delicious Medicinal Pork Bone Broth, so M has been supplying me daily and getting me everything I need. I'm so glad to have him, he is wonderful, if a bit messy <3 :)

Today I ate beef and broccoli with more soup and a handful of raspberries and macadamia nuts. Megan told me that there have been studies that show that fasting supports bone healing. I think that on most days for a while I am going to eat to support bone health as much as possible. Protein, green vegetables, calcium, vitamins, bone broth, etc...and fast periodically but not go overboard with it right now since my body does need resources to heal with. 

In a few weeks I hope to be able to walk again. I suck at crutches. Not very good at balancing...I fell over my first try which did not improve my situation. On the upside, this experience is going to be good for my upper body and core muscles. The only way I can get into or out of our apartment is to drag myself up and down twelve steps. M helps me by stabilizing my leg, but I have to use my arms to lower or raise myself step by step. It is exhausting, and not very glamorous, but it works. I can't put any weight on my ankle for at least 6 weeks, so this is the way it's going to be for a while...

Re-Starting A Fast After the Holidays...

After 46 hours I couldn't take it any more this time and had to eat, which brings me to this post...

I think it was a mistake for me to take a break from my longer fasts and then jump right back into it again.  I think that taking a week or so to focus on low carb high fat food before you jump back into fasting is a good idea.  Eating LCHF makes fasting much easier.

On day one of my planned 14 day fast, I was pretty miserable--very hungry, achy, and  obsessing over food.  That must be what it is like for people who are starting a low carbohydrate diet for the first time.


I did my first low carb experiment in 1998, and honestly do not remember what people refer to as the "keto flu."  When I started this fasting program, I had been eating very low carb high fat for some time.  However, over the holidays this year, I sort of went crazy with the wine and eggnog, and add to that the small treats I let myself have, I was definitely out of ketosis, and desperately needed a break from my "break."  So, after the awesome fail of my planned 14 day fast, I took a step back and decided to re-evaluate this week.

Instead of fasting this week and next week, I need to take back control of my diet.  Then, starting next Friday I get four days off, and will re-start with a 7 day fast.  I may extend the fast to 14 days depending on how I feel...It would be great if I broke 200 pounds by the end of the month--that might be just the thing I need to get it going.

It takes about 3 days to get the body back into ketosis, so I figure that by January 19th, I should be feeling much better.  Today and for the next 7 days, I will be eating very high fat, very low carb--this will make the transition to fasting much easier.  I think to keep myself motivated, I am going to post my menus for the next week or so--with pictures...

A Few Notes On Day One...

So yesterday was my first fast day in the epic 14 day fast. I bit the bullet and weighed myself. (214) Aack!!! And my waist was 40 inches. I imagine that even with the LCHF diet-- too much champagne can derail you, and New Year's Eve and New Years Day included a lot of champagne. (Serious binge-fest on the champagne and a little chocolate too if I'm going to be honest). So I was somewhat relieved to get back to a normal schedule...

Yesterday was hard! I drank coffee with cream for breakfast, and coffee, tea and water the rest of the day.  I was definitely out of ketosis. To make matters worse, there was food on offer everywhere!! Chocolate, Mediterranean appetizers, Chex mix...I felt the old familiar symptoms of my body adjusting to the fast. Vaguely achy, increased hunger, lethargy.  I think it really is best if you can sleep a lot the first day or two.

Over the next couple of days things should get better. In fact, this morning I am already feeling much better...My weight is down five pounds and my waist is down to 39. I imagine this temporary kind of fluctuation can derail a lot of people, but as a long-term low carber I know that fluctuations of 5-10 pounds a week can be fairly normal for women--especially during certain times of the month!

So anyway, I am back in the saddle and started today off with coffee and cream, and popped a batch of chicken broth in my crock pot this morning. By dinner time (12 hours) I can have a nice warm cup of that as well. As usual, the hunger is coming and going in waves, and I just have to get through them, by tomorrow I may not be hungry at all...